Diversity gets a foot in the door
Story and photos by James Hill
Olivia Alcaire
Finding part-time faculty work for Mexican-American Olivia Alcaire was a challenge. She rarely was a finalist for jobs and didn't know anyone at PCC with whom she could network. That all changed when Alcaire discovered PCC's new Faculty Internship Program.
"It was a foot in the door at PCC," said Alcaire, a faculty intern in 2006-07. "I was really excited getting into the program. It connected me to folks. I feel really lucky to have had the opportunity to teach and go through the program, working with James Harrison and getting to know the PCC faculty."
The Faculty Internship Program pairs aspiring instructors with experienced college faculty in their field of expertise for a year-long internship in the teaching profession. The major benefit is the relationship the interns develop with their mentor. Interns get to observe the mentor and gain valuable experience from teaching portions of the mentor's courses in fall and winter—and the majority of the course during the spring term.
"The goal of this program is to further diversify the ranks of college faculty," said Sylvia Welch, director of Affirmative Action at PCC. "We hope to achieve this by introducing the profession to people who bring their multicultural and ethnic backgrounds, along with a desire to be excellent community college faculty, counselors or librarians. We believe that improving the diversity and multicultural competence of our faculty is of critical importance in order to attract, serve and engage our diverse student body."
The Faculty Internship Program begins in late summer with several days of seminar experience that includes the college's New Faculty Institute. The program considers prospective interns from any background or life experience who demonstrate the ability to bring ethnic or multicultural competence to a position at PCC. To get a better feel for academic life, interns may elect to attend meetings with their mentors and participate in special programs, such as those sponsored by the Teaching Learning Center.
"I'm committed to honoring the diversity of our community by expanding the diversity of our students, faculty and staff," said District President Preston Pulliams. "As a community college we have an obligation to provide role models with whom each of our unique students can identify. I believe that a diverse college reflects PCC's mission and values. Learning how to live and work in an increasingly diverse world must be part of your education."
Alcaire was mentored by Cascade Campus history instructor James Harrison, who made sure she was involved in the process early on. He had her conducting presentations during fall term and Alcaire taught some topics in the winter. By spring term teaching classes came naturally to her.
"I wanted to know more than the usual things," she said. "The opportunity to work with James Harrison gave me a chance to study his approach, which is inclusive of multiple cultures and sensitive to their different experiences and contributions to history."
Alcaire already was familiar with PCC with her work in Portland State University's Extended Campus Programs at the Rock Creek Campus. She holds a master's degree in U.S. history from PSU, where she also earned her bachelor's degree. She is working on her doctorate in education from PSU. When she came to Portland from San Francisco in the 1980s she enrolled at the Sylvania Campus to start her undergraduate work. Former PCC instructor and current State Sen. Margaret Carter was her counselor.
"In 1985, I had no idea at the time about going to college," Alcaire said. "I didn't know the process. I heard about PCC through my brother, who was a student in the welding program."
From there, people like Sen. Carter turned Alcaire onto education and it led to an interest in history, specifically Mexican history. She spent time volunteering for a research institute in Mexico, writing about rain forest destruction for her master's thesis. She also has volunteered with local groups that help Spanish-speakers in Washington County make the transition from high school to college. She had all the tools, but didn't have a pathway to teaching.
Now she does. Alcaire is teaching U.S. and Mexican history classes throughout the year for the college and hopes to guide transfer students on to complete their four-year degrees.
"The internship program gave us a real opportunity to network, get professional development and be prepared to teach," she said. "Without it, it probably would have been a harder hiring process to go through. The PCC students I've met in the classes are very excited about learning. PCC pursues diversity aggressively; there is no lip-service. They are taking action."
If you are interested in applying for next year's intern program, please visit the Faculty Internships website or if you have questions call (503) 978-5841.